Beyond the Trees
by Despair's desire
Summary: Rin is getting older and a few man want her hand in marriage, including one she is interested in Shin. But there is something in her heart that won't let her be tied down just yet. What will she do? Read and Review pleasssssssssssseeeeeeeeeeeeee!
1. Rin's decision

Beyond the Trees

Chapter 1

It had been 3 years since Rin had last seen Sesshomaru and no matter how many times Kaede told her not to worry about him, she couldn't help but to worry. Rin knew in her heart that something was wrong with Sesshomaru and she was determined to find out what. Why else would he abandon her? She planned to leave on Kaede's birthday, when the villagers planned to have a festival in celebration of her long life. Kaede was now the eldest person in the village and the wisest but that didn't mean anyone took her advice. Kagome and Inuyasha were her worst offenders. Although Kagome often took her advice, Inuyasha did all he could to avoid it.

"Don't sleep in the woods," Kaede warned him, "the villagers will think you're a demon."

"Aren't these villagers smart enough to remember me by now. If any of these morons make a move to attack me, I'll rip them to shreds." Inuyasha yelled at poor little Kaede.

"Shut up Inuyasha" Kagome scolded, "Kaede is just trying to save you the trouble of being mistaken for a demon, which you technically are. Of course they know you, but when they see something strange in a tree you can't blame them for attacking it before it makes a move to eat them"

"But I'm not going to eat anyone."

"That's not the point" The argument never ceased and Kagome was yelling osuwari till the sun went down. Rin was the second worst when it came to listening to advice. Over the years Rin had become like a daughter to Kaede and she was taught domestic chores so that she would be able to manage the household when she was married. But Rin could never be a normal girl. She would always have that wild little girl inside of her that longed to be at Sesshomaru's side, sleeping in the woods with Ah-Un and Jaken.

Rin had strange habits from her days with Sesshomaru, which were hard to break and she found making friends difficult. When she hung out with the other little girls, they wanted her to play with dolls. But Rin liked to look for stick and pretend to be Jaken. 'Hello master, how can I be of service" she would say in Jaken's warmish tongue. The little girls never got the joke and never tried to after she began whacking their dolls with the stick as if it was a sword. Rin's proposal to cook lizards and bugs didn't help either.

Rin also had the urge to steal from people. It was also a bad habit that she picked up from being from Sesshomaru, but was necessary in those days. Kaede found herself asking Rin constantly where she got certain things because the house was full of toys, chicken eggs, jewelry, pitchforks, and one time a horse, which Rin attempted to stuff inside the house but to no avail. She warned Rin not to steal and as she got older there were less random items in the hut.

By the time Rin was 15, she became a pretty girl and less awkward than she was as a girl. By 18 she was coveted by some young men and she shared feelings for one of the guys who was kind to her even when she was awkward. The guy's name was Shin and he was good friends with Shippo, who had been her best friend growing up. But there was always something keeping Rin from completely loving Shin. It was something from her past with Sesshomaru that she could shake. She thought it was probably the freedom of living in the woods, the danger of the demons whom Sesshomaru always protected her from. Sesshomaru and Kohaku that is. She'd often think of Kohaku too but like Sesshomaru's absence, his was as hard to bear.

Kaede saw promise in Rin's chances of getting married and told her to constantly wash up so she would look presentable, but Rin was too rebellious. Shin and Shippo never cared about her appearance nor did Sesshomaru or Kohaku when she lived in the woods. She detested the idea of looking like the rest of the women in the village. There was an absence of freedom in being to clean. She spent most of the time walking out in the woods. When she returned from her escapades through the woods, her hair was full of leaves and her face was caked with dirt. But sometimes when she would catch her reflection in the water, she would rub the dirt from her face and take the leaves from her hair.

Despite Rin's belief that Kaede did not know she planned to leave on her birthday, Kaede knew. She only had to look at Rin to see that she longed to leave the village. Rin's stare was always distant and she could not hold conversations for long because her mind would wander. Kaede wished she knew a way to wipe Sesshomaru from Rin's mind.

"Perhaps she doesn't fit in because she was away with Sesshomaru for so long. They are the same now, they both don't have a place they really belong." Shippo once said to Kaede. She agreed that this probably had something to do with it but that it shouldn't stop Rin from trying to fit in. Shippo told her that he could understand Rin's feelings. He too did not feel completely a part of the village even though he made more friends than Rin. He always made Rin feel welcome even when the other kids didn't want her around and when she wished to be alone he followed her, hidden in the trees, to make sure she wasn't harmed.

"Shippo" Rin said when she heard a rustle behind her. "I know you're back there. I don't need your protection, really I'll be fine."

"What do you mean? There's no one here?" Shippo said in a squeaky voice to disguise his own as he hid behind the leaves.

"Shippo" Rin said and laughed as he jumped down, his huge orange fox tail swinging to and fro behind him. "Did Kaede tell you to follow me?"

"No."

"Then why do you follow me all the time?"

"I get worried about you Rin. You're not a demon and you don't know how to fight. If a demon comes out and attacks you, how are you going to protect yourself?"

"I'll throw dirt in their eyes and run."

"Like that will work."

"Well it doesn't matter. There are no demons out here."

"Yes there are."

"Fine, come with me then. But don't hide in the trees. You be Sesshomaru and I'll be Jaken" She picked up a stick and slumped over. "Ok master?" Shippo pulled up his pants slightly and put his tail over his shoulder, then raised his nose to the air.

"This way Jaken" he said as they walked forward. It was always this way with Rin and Shippo, they got along well. But when Rin didn't want him to come, Shippo still followed behind doing his best to quietly follow her, even though she knew he was behind her.


	2. Kaede's Birthday

Beyond the Trees

Chapter 2

When it was finally her birthday, Kaede was more worried than ever. She was getting older and also weaker. She would not be able to easily follow Rin in such a state? Rin held Kaede up by her arm and picked her up so they could walk to the village center for the celebration. When Kaede was up she accepted the cane that Rin handed her and then gave her a stern look.

"Rin" she said. "You are 18 years old now. You need to look to your future."

"What are you talking about Kaede?" Rin laughed. "I am looking towards my future." Kaede looked away as they walked outside to the village square.

"Rin there is nothing left for you in the past. You have grown up to be a beautiful young lady and I want you to live a quiet and safe life, not the life you used to know." Kaede said sadly.

"The life I used to know? Why would you think I want to go back to that life? I abandoned that life when Sesshomaru left me here to live with you."

"And to stay with me Rin. He wanted you to stay her no matter what the circumstances were and as long as you remember that, I will not worry." Kaede looked into Rin's eyes and Rin nodded then smiled. She looked away, she was not reassured that Rin would stay, only that Rin was set on leaving and that it was too late to reason with her. Kaede knew if Rin did not stay in the village, her life would be in danger. She was already killed twice and if there was third time, there was no way Sesshomaru could save her. Wherever he was he would not be there like the old days that Rin sought so desperately. She needed to put aside her feelings for Sesshomaru and live like a normal girl and hopefully get married.

When they got closer to the square, the villagers welcomed Kaede with smiles and cheers. Sango took Kaede by the hand and Miroku came following close behind.

"Kaede you're looking younger than ever" Miroku said and Kaede blushed.

"Oh Miroku you are too kind. Where are the kids?" She asked them both.

"Somewhere. Miroku I thought you were watching them" Sango scolded.

"They are so fast, I can't keep up with them" Miroku said but his jest was met with his wife's scowl. "Ok one second I'll just wind tunnel them over here." Second swing and a miss. "I'll be right back, I'll find them." Kaede and Rin laughed as Sango shook her head.

"You guys really are made for each other" Rin said.

"Ugh, you'd think when he got older he'd grow up but I guess that's too much for ask for. It's like when I thought we'd get married and he'd only have eyes for me. Its just looking, he says heh" Sango crossed her arms and looked behind her as Miroku called for the kids.

"He has his ways Sango, but he loves you" Kaede said patting her on the back as she walked further into the square to greet the other villagers.

"Yes I know." Sango said smiling and then she looked at Rin. "So Rin when will you get married? I hear a lot of the guys around here talking about you. You'll have no shortage of suitors." Rin made a face of disgust. "Oh come on the guys here aren't that bad."

"No its not that. Its just…" Rin started but her mind was quickly wandering to someone that she was afraid to mention.

"Hey Shippo" Sango said as Shippo walked up from behind. Rin quickly turned around and smiled as Shippo walked forward.

"Hi Sango, Hi Rin. Where's Kaede?" Shippo asked.

"She's over there greeting the villagers." Sango said pointing at Kaede, who was greeting an old farmer. Shippo looked and then twisted his face in confusion.

"What is Miroku doing?" Rin and Sango looked at Miroku, whose butt was sticking out from under a vendor's cart. Apparently he caught hold of something and was trying to pull it out from under the cart.

"Ohhh Miroku" Sango growled and stomped over to where he struggled. Shippo and Rin laughed. Then Shippo scratched behind his head and looked over to Rin.

"Hey Rin, want to go get something to eat?"

"I'd rather not." Rin said and then giggled at Shippo's reaction. "It's ok Shippo, you can hang out with your friends. I know that Mika is waiting for you." Shippo blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Mika, Mika who? I don't know who you are talking about" Shippo protested and Rin laughed.

"Really its ok. I have to go back and get something anyway." Shippo gave in and promised to save Rin some squid on a stick. When Shippo was out of sight, Rin backed up and went to the hut. When she was there she packed some left over rice and bread into a cloth and filled up a canteen, then she walked over to Sango and Miroku's home.

When she was at their home, she grabbed a package neatly hidden under the wooden floorboard. She looked both ways to make sure nobody saw her leaving the hut and then went back into Kaede's hut. When she opened the package, it was Sango's uniform from her exterminator days. It was the perfect plan, she thought, if she wore this there was no way that demons would attack her. She put it on now and it fit perfectly since she was the same body type Sango was in those days. Rin also took a spare bow and arrow Kaede kept in the hut and when she had all the things she needed, she stole out of the hut and into the woods. She would finally find out what became of Sesshomaru after all of these years.


	3. The samurai and the woman in white

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine yada yada. Please review or I won't continue, thanks 

Rin ran quickly and lightly through the forest avoiding the roads so she wouldn't be found by anyone looking for her. She'd been travelling now for almost a week and was running low on food. Rin remembered there being many villages close to Kaede's village but strangely she hadn't found one yet. Maybe it was because she was too far from the road, she thought. When she finally found the road, she saw a rugged looking man pacing back and forth staring down at it. She retreated behind a bush and peaked through watching the man whisper to himself. She couldn't figure out what he was mumbling but saw a samurai leading a horse with a woman in white on it on the road. She saw the man stop mumbling and lay down on his stomach as he stared down at the couple pass by.

'He's up to no good' Rin thought. She suddenly became afraid that he meant to ambush them right then and there but noticed he did not have a sword in his hand. She tried to get a better glimpse of the man's face and as the man and woman passed by she saw him get up, scratch his groin and lick his lips. Rin's face scrunched up in disgust. She could tell by looking at him that this man was not a samurai or a man of distinction. He was a bandit at best. He looked like he hadn't bathed in weeks, maybe even months. Flys were attached to him like bees were to flowers. His beard was thick and matted and his mouth was twisted in a permanent smirk that forboded of chronic misgivings. Rin decided to warn the couple, even though it would put her in danger.

'Sesshomaru would not do that,' she thought as she watched the man follow the two as he hid behind trees on the sloped ravine. But she had to do it. She didn't want the guilt of knowing she could have helped avert an atrocity. Rin descended down the ravine onto the road, then ran to the man and woman.

"Hello. Sorry to bother you" Rin started as she bowed in greeting.

"No its fine, what is the matter child?" The samuri said and his wife pulled her veil from her face to look at the stranger before her.

"Well…" Rin said as she brought her voice down to a whisper and stepped a little closer. "There's a bandit above, on this slope, who has been watching and following you. I watched him and I think he intends on tricking you or attacking you."

"Ahh," the samurai said dipping down his hat over his face and whispering, "I've seen him but thank you so much for telling us." Rin suddenly felt silly for believing the samurai wouldn't have noticed the assailant.

"Are you travelling alone in these woods?" The woman asked quietly.

"Yes I am."

"Well then come with us. My husband will protect you. These forests are littered with demons and bandits."

"Where are you going?"

"We're heading south."

"No that's ok, I'm heading north. I just came from the south, but thank you so much." Rin said bowing to take her leave.

"Be careful." The samurai said and the wife nodded putting her veil back into place as they continued on. Rin climbed back up the ravine on the other side of the road. There was no doubt in her mind that the bandit saw her talk to the couple, although he might not have heard what they spoke of. She moved quickly, if he caught up with her there would be hell to pay. She beat herself up for telling them. If she had just moved on she would not be in danger and the couple would have been safe because the samurai was already aware of the bandit's presence. It was over now though; she made her decision and would have to press on, if possible for this whole night until she found a village.

By the middle of the night, Rin was drunk with fatigue. The lack of food and sleep was beginning to take a toll on her body. He had to rest, she thought, surely she could take a short rest and get away before the bandit reached her. She laid her head down on the hard ground and almost immediately sunk into a deep sleep until she was awoken by a rustling noise in the bushes. She lifted her head. It was probably nothing but the wind moving against the leaves. But what if it was a demon? Or the bandit? She decided to brush the thoughts away. It was probably just her mind playing tricks on her. But the moment she rested her head on the ground she heard the noises again. It seemed like they were moving from all around her.

She got up and ran away from the noise but still it persisted. She didn't know which way to run. There were noises coming from everywhere. She walked backwards from where she heard the last immediate sound until suddenly she felt someone grabbing her. There was glint of the moonlight dancing on a blade, now being pressed into her neck.

"Got ya!" A serpentine voice said.


	4. Bandits

Disclaimer: Not my charactes blah, blah. Hey guys I love the story alerts, favs, etc but please review too. I am a fulltime writer, currently using fanfiction as practice, so I'd really love to hear what you think. No matter how brutally honest your critiquie, in fact brutally honest is the best. Thanks!

Beyond the Trees

Chapter 4

Rin woke up to the smell of rotten onions, which she soon realized was the body odor of the man holding her over his shoulder. She tried to move but her hands were tied behind her back and her feet were secured together. She didn't give up and start to throw a fit of squirming. Rin felt a thwack on her head from a blunt object and looked up to see who had delivered the blow. It was the man in front of her. He was lifting the bottom of his spear at Rin as if to say 'if you try anything I'll bludgeon you.' His look was sinister enough to know that he meant it but that didn't stop Rin from giving him a dirty look.

Beyond him was a line of men following behind, all looking as filthy if not filthier than the next. She noticed the dirty bandit from the road. He was grabbing a bounded woman's face and pulling it to his long outstretched tongue. The girl let out a disgusted scream as his saliva journeyed up her cheek and he let out a devilish chortle of delight. There were many women bounded and being pushed forward in bonds. Many were looking down, dejected and most likely trying not to think of the horrors to come. Rin tried not to think of them either and looked back to better times, but even that did not comfort her. Instead it made her feel guilty for selfishly leaving her safe home, her family and friends to end up in this situation.

They were walking for a while before the men began announcing that camp was near. Rin tried to look forward but was immediately hit. Instead Rin looked around at the trees for some sort of hope. There was no way Sesshomaru would allow her to be taken like this. If he knew she was in danger he'd come speeding out of these woods and kill each one of these bandits. She looked at the man behind her as if to say 'there's something bad coming for you'. He scoffed at her and then moments later looked towards the woods. Rin smiled at her success in scaring him but no matter how hard she willed Sesshomaru to come, she didn't see a glint of white in the distance as she expected. Before she knew it she was being thrown to the ground in a fenced bandit settlement and looking into the eyes of a sharp eyed bandit, who she took to be the leader.

"So this is the demon exterminationer you mentioned Taku" The man said looking down at Rin. She tried to pick herself up but the man quckily and forcifully kicked her in the chest, knocking the wind out of her. "I really hate exterminators, they're like roaches. You think they're all dead, but when you lift up your feet, there they are, scurrying away." He looked down at Rin, disgusted, then kicked her before saying, "Take her to my chambers; I'll deal with her later. Show me the others." Rin was pulled up by her hair by the man who hit her with the spear earlier and she was pushed to a large tent. The man pushed her to the floor in the man's chambers and said,

"Don't try anything or else," then slid his finger across his throat. Rin looked away angrily and just sat where she was. She sat there for a while, planning her escape and listeing to the men outside. They were speaking loudly and it sounded like they were assembling to do something. She couldn't figure out what. She heard a woman crying and then a man's voice castigating her. It was undeniably the man whose chamber she was in. Her guard looked in to check on her in what seemed like every 30 seconds and when he noticed she hadn't budged he checked less frequently than more often just in case she was getting any ideas. He'd just looked in and Rin decided now was the time to set her plan in motion.

One of the first things she did upon entering was have a look around the room. There was nothing substantial to use, no weapons, no ink which she thought she could splash in the guard's face, but there was something substantial, a stick. She decided this would suffice to render the guard senseless or at least stun him. 'I'll teach him a lesson' she thought and wore an expression of cunning on her face. She lay down on her back and lifted her back off the ground with her legs stretched up in the air. Then she moved her bounded arms under her butt and bent her legs pulling her arms up and over them. She got to work untying the knots of the rope on her legs and then walked as hastily and quietly as she could over to the stick which she grabbed. She stood next to the door, breathing lightly waiting for the guard to stick his head in to check on her. She had her still bounded hands tightly grasping the stick and raised above her head.

Her heart was beating fast as she anticipated his entrance, just when she thought to give her arms a rest he peaked his head in. His face twisted in a look of confusion and before he could turn to see where she went, he felt a stick crack on his skull. He felt a tug on his waist as he tried to orient himself. When his senses cleared he realized his spear was gone, the prisoner had escaped. He ran out and yelled with all his might.

"The exterminator has escaped!" Rin was running as fast as she could to the back of the camp. She heard the thrashing of men's feet on the ground. She had a better weapon now, a spear instead of a mere stick. But she had no idea where to go, the encampment was fenced in, the only entrance was in the front and she was definitely not going there. She stared at the height of the fence and suddenly had an idea. She ran to the west wall which was the closest. Rin pulled back the spear with the most force she could muster and stabbed it into the fence at about the height of her stomach. The men were closing in. She put a hand on the fence and took a giant step on the spear, then put her other foot on as fast as she could. She felt wobbly, but held her balance for enough time to jump up and grab the pointed part of the fence with both hands and push herself up. She felt hands reaching for her and swords slashing as she used her feet to scamper up the fence. Her hands were bleeding and her chest, waist and torso were being torn up by the fence. She didn't mind the wounds and squirmed as fast as she could over the fence.

When she was got over the fence she fell almost face first but she managed to fall on her side, hurting her leg on the way. She saw arrows descending down like rain and put her back to the fence to avoid them. She heard an angry man's voice yell,

"Don't kill her! I want her back alive. But bring her in by wringng her neck if you have to, so she'll never think of escaping the gates." She heard the sound of the men rushing to the entrance and ran as fast as she could to the woods. But it was not fast enough. Rin was bleeding from all corners of her body. Her run was more of hop because of the pain in the right leg from the fall. Still she pressed on despite the pain. If there was any time she needed Sesshomaru to rescue her it was now. She wanted to cry out his name even though she knew it would give away her location. She tried to hold in the urge but tears emerged and with a hoarse cry she yelled,

"Sesshomaru!" But there was no rustle in the grass. No rush of the wind as he ran with haste. The blood loss was taking a toll on her and Rin fell to the ground. She tried to crawl away but it was no use, the grass before her was becoming blurry. She flipped herself on her back and listend to the bandits' coarse tongues surrounding her.

"I see her! On the ground over there." A voice yelled. Rin told her body to move and tried to grip the grass to pick herself up but she couldn't. The wolves were after again she thought.

"Sesshomaru" she whispered. She looked at blurry clouds pass slowly by. Everything was blending together, the blue of the sky meshing with the green of the leaves. The brown of the trunks and the black of the darkness beyond were becoming indistinguishable but still no white flicker beyond. The feet were growing closer to her. Soon she would feel the hardness of bone hitting her flesh; she hoped to pass out before that came. She couldn't bear anymore pain. Rin closed her eyes and was ready to give herself over to unconsciousness when she heard a whisper. Her eyes shot back open. The men were letting out shrieks and groans of pain. There was twang of a weapon as it was being reeled back in, then whipped out. It was not a whisper that she heard but the sound of the weapon as it flew in the air as smooth as a summer breeze cutting through the air. Rin could not see who it was or if there was a person at all. It might be her imagination playing a dying girl's wish. The pain was too much and though she mustered all her strength, she closed her eyes to a symphony of her pumping heart beat, men's death cries and the sound of a chain swinging through the air, a blade slicing the wind.


	5. An old friend

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 5_

When Rin opened her eyes she was in a small house. She tried to sit up but quickly felt the pain from wounds all over her body. She laid back down and took in her surroundings. There was a cast iron pot hanging over a heath with steam spiraling up in the air. The smell was heavenly. The home was neat and she saw a pair of sandals placed neatly by the entrance of the door. She wasn't back at the bandit's encampment that was for sure and she felt a huge wave of relief rush through her. But who saved her? Was it Sesshomaru? Perhaps the chain link she heard was the one Jaken had on Ah un's bridle and the blade swinging through the air was Sesshomaru's sword. Her heart lifted but her track of thought was interrupted when a girl who looked like she was in her early teens entered.

"Oh you're finally up." The girl said. Rin looked over at her and smiled.

"How long have I been here?" She replied trying to prop her head up with out causing any pain to her body.

"Just one night. You were in terrible condition last night but we've dressed your wounds and we think you're going to heal fast." The girl answered. She was using a lot of 'we,' Rin thought, but couldn't figure out who the other person was. Maybe it was the girl whose sandals were by the entrance, but if so, wouldn't the girl be in the home.

"Thank you so much for taking care of me. My name is Rin."

"I know. My name is Mika. Nice to meet you, well formally that is, since I met you last night but you were out like this." The girl said making a face with her tongue out.

"Was I really?" Rin said and the girl laughed.

"No silly, though you did look really bad, all bloody and stuff. The exterminator's uniform you wore was all torn up, but I'm fixing it for you. See?" The girl said and pointed behind Rin. She tried to get a look at it but it was too painful to turn around. Rin thanked her again but there was something puzzling her.

"How did you know that was an exterminator's uniform?"

"Huh?" the girl said walking over to get the uniform.

"Umm that uniform. It doesn't really belong to me, but it belongs to an exterminator I know back home. There are only two left living, how did you know about the exterminators?" It was a question that puzzled her ever since her encounter with the bandit who took out his hatred for exterminators on her.

"Oh that's because I know an exterminator too. His name is Kohaku, he lives in this village."

"Kohaku?!" Rin exclaimed.

"Yea I know I know, he knows you too, even though he hasn't fully explained how he knows you." The girl gave Rin a side glare and then continued. "But he's the one who saved you. He came running in with you in his arms and said Mika hurry get Yari, that's the healing lady. I was so mad but then he told me you were an old friend, Rin, he said your name is. I've been thinking about how you could've met all night and day." She showed Rin the uniform and Rin smiled and commented on her handiwork. Mika continued on her rant about how she thought Rin and Kohaku could've met, "maybe they were exterminators together" she mused more to herself than to Rin and when she stopped talking Rin finally put in a word.

"It's a pretty complicated story, but Kohaku and I knew each other as kids. That was almost 8 years ago." She wanted to add in that he was her protector but she could tell that this girl would just be annoyed if she did and she didn't want to offend her young hostess.

"8 years ago?!" Mika exclaimed. "Oh you both were so young. He couldn't possibly have had feelings for you then." She went on and on looking up dreamily and putting herself into good spirits. Then when she was done, now looking at Rin more as a friend than a rival she said, "I made some soup for you." She scooped some up in a bowl and tried to give it to Rin but Rin was too weak to handle it. Mika put the bowl down by the futon and knelt down, then she blew off the smoke and dipped it into Rin's mouth as slowly and gently as she could. Rin could tell Mika was kind hearted and began to think about her time with Kaede. She was so selfish to leave when Kaede needed her? As hard as she tried to hold them back a few tears fell down her cheek and Mika looked stunned. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine" Rin said quickly chocking back her tears but Mika was not convinced. She put down the bowl and ran out calling out for Kohaku. She was foolish to break down crying like that and weak, she hated herself for it. She lifted up her hand despite the pain to wipe the tears from her eyes. She didn't want Kohaku to see her in such a pitiful state.

A few moments later Mika entered explaining the situation to someone behind her as she took off her sandals by the door. Kohaku came in after her. He looked only slightly different than when they were younger. He was much taller now and although the front of his hair was still spiky, the back was not up in a high ponytail. Instead it was tied by a small band closer to his neck. His hair looked darker than she remembered too but besides that he was still looked like the kind boy from the old days. His eyes were still big and innocent, though they looked a bit weary. He also wore an exterminator uniform similar to his old one which she guessed he had modified by someone to fit his height.

"Hey she looks fine now." Mika said looking down at Rin. Rin looked away.

"Rin, its been a long time." Kohaku said more thoughtfully than happily. Rin looked over to him. She didn't know exactly what to say. She wanted to run over to him and hug him, she missed her days with him and Sesshomaru so much. But for obvious reasons she couldn't.

"Yea it has been." Rin said looking away again, smiling slightly.

"Looks like she's still kind of bummed out." Mika said. She looked back and forth between Rin and Kohaku, then suddenly felt like a third wheel. "Ok ok I'm going out." She said looking inquisitively at Rin and Kohaku. "But I will be back Very Soon." When she walked out the door, Kohaku walked over to Rin and knelt down. She still looked away.

"You really should eat something."

"I'm not hungry." Kohaku put down the bowl that he just picked up and looked down for a bit.

"Rin I thought you were living with Kaede. Why were you in the woods? And why do you have Sango's uniform?" Rin turned her head in Kohaku's direction but still looked down.

"I may have, kinda stole it." She said looking up in his eyes for a second as she confessed.

"Some things never change huh?"

"Well I was going to return it as soon as I…."

"As soon as you what?"

"As soon as I found Sesshomaru."

"As soon as you found Sesshomaru? Do you know how dangerous it is to travel in the woods alone?"

"Yea but I figured that if he knew I was looking for him than he'd come and get me."

"That sounds like the stupidest thing I've ever heard. If Sesshomaru wanted you in the woods then he'd take you around with him. He can't just sense that you're in the woods and find you Rin."

"Well, whatever, it seemed like a good plan when I started it. He always seemed to find me when I was lost. Why would this time be any different?"

"But what's the point? Why are you looking for Sesshomaru anyway?"

"Well I haven't seen him in so long. It's been like 3 years since I've seen him. I don't know what happened to him and I want to make sure he's ok."

"This is Sesshomaru we're talking about Rin, I'm sure he's fine."

"Yea but…"

"Listen you can do whatever you want but its dangerous out there. I just think you should've thought this through a little more."

"Thanks Kohaku" Rin said. She knew he really didn't like the idea that she went out on what he thought was stupid mission to find Sesshomaru, but he wouldn't go outright and make her feel dumb about it, though she kind of felt dumb about it anyway.

"You should eat a bit more." Kohaku said lifting the bowl of soup again. Rin blushed slightly.

"Can you get Mika to do it?" She said. She was accustomed to having Kohaku protect her from the old days but this too much. She didn't want to feel like that weak little girl anymore. Having Kohaku feed her was the absolute last thing she wanted. Kohaku looked a little confused, he didn't understand what the big deal was but got up to leave and get Mika.

"Hey Kohaku" Rin said before he walked out of the door and he turned around. "Thank you for saving me. I really mean it."

"Yea just be a little more careful. When I saw you yesterday I really thought…well I thought that you were dead."

"Yea it was a pretty stupid of me. I'll be more careful." She smiled and Kohaku smiled back then left to get Mika. Rin did think it was stupid of her, but not the search for Sesshomaru; it was stupid of her to get caught. She wouldn't let that happen again, she thought.


	6. Recovery

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 6_

As the days progressed, Rin began to recover with Mika's help and during this time she couldn't help but notice the young men in the village being taught to fight with swords, spears, bows and arrows by no other than Kohaku. They were up bright and early every morning and then were busy working every evening reinforcing their fences made of spike pointed wood, like the bandit's camp, while elderly men worked on lever looking contraptions. All of the men were either elderly or teenagers; there were no men in between. She thought this was strange but wasn't able to walk around the village and figured that was why she never saw any middle aged she wasn't quite sure what the men were preparing for either. Was there a war headed their way? She decided to ask Mika.

"What are the men training for Mika?" Rin asked. Mika was folding laundry and talking about Kohaku when Rin interrupted her with this question. She remained silent for a while which was a rarety. "Mika?" Rin's constant prying was obviously getting on her nerves and Mika threw the clothes in the basket as she said,

"You should know better than anyone why, since you lived with them for a day." Rin was taken aback by this comment and then realized she must've hit a nerve. Still she pressed on.

"The bandits?" Rin asked and Mika looked ahead her face contorted in a frown. "Are they coming to attack this village?" Rin was suddenly scared. Was this her fault? Were they coming after her and going to take it out on the villagers? Mika saw the worry in Rin's face and realized that she may have lashed out at her for no reason.

"Well not exactly. They already have." Mika said and looked at Rin who didn't seem to understand. Mika sat down by Rin looking out of the window, where the men were training. "Ever since I can remember I have lived in fear. When I was young, my father and other men in the village heard of the bandit's plan to attack the village and prepared to stop them. But we're a village of farmers and standing up to bandits were like a herd of sheep standing down a pack of hungry wolves. The men were slaughtered and so were other villagers like my mother. A few people were spared but the young girls were pulled from their homes and taken to an encampment. I was only a child at the time and wasn't taken, but my sister was." Rin saw Mika look down at the sandals by the door. "It's been almost three years since she was taken."

"I'm so sorry Mika, I didn't know." Rin said rubbing her back but Mika did not shed any tears.

"Its ok, it won't happen again. They've threatened our village many times after they almost annilihated it, but they have never been able to breech the wall since the first time. Kohaku is the one who helped us. He was just a wanderer who came upon our pitiful village but now he is the most important person here. He's helped us build our defenses and taught us how to fight back. Soon we won't have to worry about their attacks anymore; they'll be the ones that will have to worry about us." Mika said with a fire in her eyes. She looked at Rin with this passion, that Rin had never felt before and she felt butterflies in her stomach. She now understood why Mika always talked about Kohaku, it wasn't just a silly girl's crush, as she thought, he had restored a battered girl's heart and replaced her fear with hope. Rin too could learn something from Kohaku; she looked out of the window and smiled. She wouldn't leave the village in a search for Sesshomaru as soon as she recovered, which is what she planned; there was something for her here, something that she couldn't touch or see, but felt as she looked into Mika's eyes and the men outside issuing their battle cries.


	7. Kohaku's choice

Hey Everyone!! Sorry I haven't updated quickly. I had a really big test to study for this week and couldn't even think about writing. But I want to thank you for putting up with me and a special shout out to those of you who review. You are the best! I'm continuing this story for you. Thanks! Keep reading and tell me what you think. ;-)

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 7_

When Rin could finally walk again, she watched the men practice outside instead of from her bed in Mika's house. As they praticed their thrusts, parries, reposts, and evasive maneuvers, Rin practiced hers as well. Once the limp began to diminish, Rin joined the training more vigourously. Kohaku taught her how to not just thrust with force but also how speed would be her best asset at beating an enemy. Her best martial trade was by far the bow and arrow. She had been taught a little bit by Kaede and Kagome but she was never a direct hit but after training with Kohaku, her aim was almost dead on. It was still tough for her to hit a moving target; she tried her best to get better at it.

Many of the women in the village did not join training because they saw it as a man's job to fight but after witnessing Rin's prowess they were intrigued. Rin taught them techniques to protect themselves and finally began to feel that she earned the right to wear Sango's uniform now that she knew how to fight decently. Yet when she looked at the uniform, it still reminded her of home and what she left.

The feeling of danger was always immenent at the village. Mika explained as they walked the countryside one day, how there was a time when farmers harvested crops and took midday naps on their fields but not anymore. Now there were men in the forest watching for bandits who might be lurking like wolves in the trees while other men tilled the land. They were on the lookout day and night for bandits. Kohaku did the most looking out, day and night and only took short naps during the mornings which were the least likely times for bandits to be out. Mika explained how she joked to him that he must've been a bandit with his sleeping habits. But Kohaku never revealed his life before he came to the village, not to Mika or not to anyone. Mika tried to coax Rin into revealing some of Kohaku's childhood, but Rin held onto his secret childhood as tightly as she did her own.

Rin wanted to talk to Kohaku, but he was either sleeping, training or on the lookout. On top of that if she did have a chance to speak with him, Mika would likely be in tow. She was almost afraid to have a talk to him, because she still felt tense after their last talk, it was clear that Kohaku still thought she was selfish for leaving Kaede's village, but she wanted to know what he had done for all the years she hadn't seen him and why he was at this village. She eventually got her chance, one night when Kohaku decided to have some of the men do a lookout by themselves. He was apprehensive about his decision but thought it was the best to leave the duty to the men. A boy, Toji, who reminded Rin of Shin, her boyfriend from Kaede's village, and had a crush on Mika, asked Mika to come eat with him and his family. Mika denied every one of his advances but Kohaku convinced her to go for him. Mika said that she would be back soon and gave Rin a stern look before taking her leave, which Rin and Kohaku laughed off when she left.

Rin dipped a spoon in a pot of soup that she made earlier with Mika's help and served up two bowls one for her and one for Kohaku. They sat quietly enjoying the spicy beef broth when Rin started laughing.

"What is it?" Kohaku said.

"Nothing." She said but still laughed a little. Kohaku looked at her strangely. "Well it's just strange don't you think,? After our childhoods, that we are here eating soup in this really tiny village. I mean I always expected our lives to be a little different than this, instead of sitting here like a bunch of villagers you know?"

"Yea I guess meeting here again is a bit strange. The first time we met wasn't exactly the most normal of circumstances but then again neither was finding you almost dead in a forest a couple of months ago."

"But don't you feel like that was normal, to meet again that way. Dangerous was always normal in the past. For me this" Rin said looking around at the inside of the house, "is not normal. Its strange to me."

"And that's why you set out for Sesshomaru? To get your sense of 'normalcy' back?"

"Don't judge me Kohaku. You live here but your life is still nothing normal. You train farmers how to kill, you lie in wait in the forest for bandits, your life like mine can never be normal and trying to be normal is strange."

"If I get rid of the bandits, then this village will be safe and there will be no more need to fight anymore. They are just like demons, they destroy people's villages and take lives for no reason. At least demons attack people for food, for bandits it is only greed."

"I was wondering why you were here, if it was just out of the goodness of you're heart or if there was another reason. A selfish one." Rin said and Kohaku was silent for a while. "You're doing this so you can live a normal life? To give a normal life to these people? Or to yourself? Even if you married Mika and had kids your life can still never be like everyone else's."

"Rin, I could've married and lived like a "normal" person as you like to call them. But the thought of people whose lives were in danger because of demons or bandits kept me from that life. Its not selfishness or selflessness, it's in my blood, I'm an exterminator."

"But what about Sango she doesn't do that anymore?"

"That's because Sango didn't kill her family or betray the one's she loves. She succeeded in destroying the demon messed up our lives and the lives of others."

"So you remember?"

"I can never forget. Not anymore."

"And will you spend you're entire life repenting for something that was not your fault?"

"I've done more bad in my childhood than the worst bandits have done in their entire life. If it takes my entire life to correct my mistakes, because they are mine, I'll do that."

"But it's not your fault! Just forget about it."

"How can I forget about it? Weren't you the one that said I can never live a normal life? You have a lot of opinions Rin and you convince yourself that you can't live normally, but have you ever tried? Or was this your selfish decision? To go out find Sesshomaru and then what? Walk around the forest with him, Jaken, and Ah Un, having him protect you when you have a family to go back to. Back then you didn't have anyone, but Sesshomaru found you one and you abandoned it. You choose not to live normally, for no reason but your own selfish desires. A romance with a demon immune to love." Kohaku stared at Rin for an answer but she just looked away.

It was a selfish decision, Rin knew that. What was she training for? To fight the bandits and demons and suddenly come upon Sesshomaru so they could journey the world together like before. What was she thinking? She'd be nothing but a burden to Sesshomaru, but she wondered if it was even love that she wanted from him. It was the freedom that she wanted. Living in a house with a husband and kids was not the life for her. Going on this journey had been her only excitement since 8 years ago, her last time with Sesshomaru. Even here at this village was a breath of fresh air, she wanted this, she didn't want the provinial life. Kohaku said something that Rin missed but she noticed him get up to leave.

"Wait!" Rin said and Kohaku still walked away. Before she could try to keep him from leaving she heard the sound of a horn and screaming. Her eyes widened and Kohaku looked back at her.

"An attack."


	8. The Attack

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 8_

They both rushed out and they saw the villagers scrambling. A young man, breathless came up to Kohaku.

"The bandits…on the field…coming…towards village" The man breathed out.

"Is everyone behind the fence?" Kohaku said sternly. The young man shook his head.

"A few are hiding…that lookouts are in the forest." The man said. Kohaku looked around, the men assembled, weapons in hand.

"Close and defend all the fences to the rear and on the sides. I'm going out through the front, and when I'm out, defend that too." The men agreed to do as they were told in unison and quickly went to the fences. One of the men brought Kohaku some weapons and he quickly went to the fence.

"Kohaku let me go with you." Rin said.

"There's no time Rin." He said and walked through the fence quickly.

As the time passed they could here the sound of bandits by the fence. The men pushed a contraption they had made close to the fence and stood on it looking out onto the fields. When they spotted a bandit they fired at them and were quick to duck when the arrows came flying. This method was dangerous, it was dark out and the men could hardly see the bandits and where they were hiding. It was either for bandits to see them since their heads were peaking out over the fence. On top of that bandits were surrounding all sides of the fence and there were far more bandits than there were village men. They also worried if Kohaku made it to the forest alive and thoughts that he didn't took down the morale of the men. If they lost Kohaku what would they do? Having him here was already a problem, they didn't know how to get the bandits out or what strategy to use. They were safe as long as they hid behind the fence, but the slew of arrows hurled their way at random times scared them for the lives of their family. They feared for their families too who were hiding hoping that no arrows descended into their homes. No home was safe. Fortunately there weren't many wounds. Most of the arrows were blocked by rooves and because of the fence the bandits weren't able to make precise shouts. The only tactic that worked for the bandit were thrusting unexpected spearhead through the smalll cracks between the wood of the fence in hopes of stabbing someone. One man was wounded but the bandit was quickly killed because the tactic revealed his location.

Rin wanted to be of help. She donned Sango's exterminator uniform and was on the lookout for bandits, just like everyone else. As the time passed she too began just listening for the bandits to leave or for Kohaku to return, her mind was racing with ideas. Soon the blanket of darkness would be lifted and morning would come, when that happened, the bandits could no longer hide and they would be at the villagers' mercy as they scurried back to their encampment. Rin felt exhilarated by this idea but there was still a problem, disorientation from lack of sleep. It was well into the middle of the night and the bandits were used to being up at these time, but the villagers weren't. They were getting tired, Rin could see the men keeping their bloodshot eyes open, to keep from nodding off but their determination when it was time for them to attack would not be enough to help them aim correctly.

Rin had an idea. She'd spent enough time with Kaede to know about the properties of herbs and Mika had used herbs to heal her wounds, so there were definitely some in the village. She went to the women, who were too worried to sleep and asked for the following herbs: cardamom, rosemary, peppermint, basil, bergamont, geranium, jasmine, lemon, palmarosa, chamomile, rosewood, and ylang ylang. Though not all of them were acessible, the majority was and she asked the women to come to gether to fuse these herbs. She also asked for basins of cold water for each of the defenses by the fence. She told the men to wet their faces with this water and smell the essence to keep clarity and sharpness of mind. The men did this and the concotion was a success, the men were perking up and it would only be a few hours till the sun would come to their aid and the bandits would run away, tails tucked behind their legs.

When the sun began to show its face on the horizon, the bandits began to run back, just as the villagers expected. The men's minds were clear and their aim, perfect. They couldn't be sure how many they killed but the bandits fell like leaves in autumn. The casualties rose with the sun and only a few bandits successfully made it to the forest. The villagers celebrated their success when there were no more bandits to be seen on all sides. However, their cheers like Rin's were saturated with a feeling of worry. Did Kohaku survive?


	9. Night in the woods

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 9_

Later that day the two men who Kohaku went to find were at the fence, one wounded, the other fatigued but otherwise fine. As soon as they were let in they were immediately asked about there whereabouts the night before and if they met with Kohaku. They did. Jiho, who was starving downed some food as he told the story about the night before.

"Shobi and I were keeping watch in the forest when we heard some rustling. I quickly grabbed him because he was nodding off and we hid behind a bush. That's when we saw the bandits, the skeevy dirty brutes. We knew there were others keeping lookout close by but didn't hear a horn or anything indication they knew about the bandits. We decided it would be best to sound ours. The bandits were close but we knew that if we sounded it, it would cost our lives. Still we agreed it was the best choice and Shobi gave the horn his biggest blow, I saw their faces in the darkness, twisted in confusion. I took out my sword just in case they came over and they did but we kept still. There was another horn that blew and I could hear the scampering of feet towards the village. The bandits were running to the fields now. I jumped out from the bush and stabbed the one that was closest to me then Shobi and I ran, hiding by trees when the arrows whizzed by. We made good distance when Shobi was shot in the leg. The bandits were close and when Shobi was about to get his death blow we saw Kohaku's chain blade swing into the back of the bandit hovering over Shobi. I couldn't count how many Kohaku killed but when he showed up we felt safe and Kohaku tied up Shobi's wounds."

"But what happened to Kohaku?" One of the villagers said indignantly. Rin looked over to see it was Mika.

"Wait hush Mika. Don't you see I'm telling the story. Anyway there were so many bandits in the forest we didn't know how to make it back to the village unseen. Plus it was dark and if we tried to cut across the field one of the villagers might shoot us thinking we were bandits. Kohaku had an idea. He took off the black armor of the bandits and we put it on. I picked up some dirt and wiped it on my face, same with Shobi's. He told us to lie down and play dead until the mid afternoon, when we should take off the bandit's uniforms and go back to the village. When I saw he wasn't going to stay with us, I asked where he was going and he said to the encampment. He put on a uniform and headed through the forest. That was the last we saw of him." Jiho said looking down, rice all over his dirt clad face.

The other villagers were distraught with worry and Mika cried all day. Rin was worried too but she knew that Kohaku had been through worse than bandits. Still she felt a twinge of fear knowing that the last thing they talked about was her selfishness. If something did happen, she wouldn't be able to deal with that being the last thing they talked about.

She immediately wanted to go out and find him, but she thought of what Kohaku would say if she did. It was a selfish decision of course but she wanted to save him. She tried to think reasonably. If he was in the bandit's encampment what would happen? She would probably blow his disguise or get caught again. If he was wounded, how did she expect to save him? He was stronger than her so chances are if he was caught she couldn't help him. She rubbed the crying Mika's back. This was almost the same thing she thought when she came to 'save' Sesshomaru, or whatever she thought she was doing. She waited for Sesshomaru to come back for three years thinking he was in some sort of trouble, but what trouble would he be in that she could save him from. If Kohaku was in trouble or Sesshomaru, how could she help? They were strong, she just learned how to wield a sword and aim an arrow.

Maybe it was the idea of abandonment that bothered her the most. The fact that she lost everyone she loved, her family, Sesshomaru, Jaken, Ah Un, and now Kohaku. She couldn't bring her family back from the dead, and similarly it was impossible to bring Sesshomaru or Kohaku back. She should've waited for Sesshomaru. What if he was at kaede's village looking for her? Held up by some sort of business that kept him for longer than expected. She shook her head. Even if that was true it was too late. She would wait for Kohaku and put her trust into his return.

"Don't worry Mika, he's coming back." But as the hours passed, it seemed like there was no chance of that happening at least not today. Everyone was stunned, however, when from the fence, they heard the voice of the lookout say,

"Kohaku!" Everyone rushed to the fence as it opened and in came Kohaku, unscathed. They all cheered at his return and asked him questions about where he was. Before he could respond, Mika came out crying and ran over to Kohaku, hugging him for dear life. Rin leaned on the doorway smiling as Mika wailed,

"Kohaku I thought you'd never come back! I missed you soooo much, never leave me again!" Through fits of sobbing. Kohaku smiled and patted her head as she cried, looking over at Rin who laughed at the spectacle.

"It's ok Mika, I'm fine."

"So where were you?" One of the villagers asked as Mika journeyed back to her senses.

"I went to the bandit's encampment. Have Shobi and Jiho returned?" Kohaku asked.

"Yes right here Kohaku" Jiho said waving his hand in the crowd.

" What were you doing there?" Another villager asked.

"Well I was dressed up as a bandit and went over to their fence. I could hear their voices, they were all complaining about something but they were talking so rapidly I couldn't hear. That's when I heard a woman screaming and one of them said,

"Why don't you just eat her if you're so damn hungry?"

"What…no I'm not going to eat her."

"Why not? You're a bandit, you've stooped low enough, stealing from people, raping women, killing children. Just cut a little of her flesh off like so and voila, hunger problem solved."

"No, no you're crazy. I'm not…"

"Then get out of my sight with your damn complaints about being hungry." The voice said." All of the villagers looked disgusted at the bandits' savagery.

"So they were attacking us to get food?" One of the villagers asked.

"I think so. It's getting bad over there, I listened at different areas of the fence to hear different things, there is constant fighting and talks of doing the worst things. Starvation does not make bandits any more humble, only more evil. They are weak and now is the time to attack them." Kohaku responded. The villagers began to murmer to each other. "It has to be tomorrow before there is a chance for them to attack another village and get fuel. They are weak. Rest tonight and tommorow at dawn we tear down their walls and attack." The villagers immediately took heart and one man raised his hand.

"We attack" He yelled. This brought a surge of courage to the others. "We attack." They yelled in unison. Kohaku nodded and walked away from the crowd, telling them to sleep as he passed. He passed by Rin,

"We need to talk." He whispered with Mika in tow behind him. "Mika please go to sleep. Rin will be right back." Rin followed him to his small house, which after she entered he closed the door.

"What's wrong Kohaku?" Rin asked as she looked up at his eyes that were downcast away from her gaze.

"I just wanted to say, about tomorrow, you shouldn't come."

"What?"

"The bandits don't like exterminators and now that they think you are one, it's probably best that you don't go. They won't be easy on you."

"They won't be easy on any of us Kohaku; I can't believe you're telling me not to fight."

"Don't take it that way. It's best if you don't come."

"No. I'm coming." Rin said and looked at Kohaku who was glaring at her now, arms crossed. She was going to hold her ground. "Why don't you understand me Kohaku? I'm not Mika, I'm not that young girl who you had to protect in the past. Let me fight, don't protect me."

"But what would Sesshomaru do? He made me your protector." Kohaku said and Rin walked close to him, her hands touching his face.

"That was a long time ago Kohaku. Let me go. Let me go like he did. Let me make my own decisions, whether they're good or bad." She looked into his eyes and then walked out of the door, back to Mika's.

The next day, the men were ready for battle. Kohaku had them assemble the first group to the check the grounds, before the rest of the force brought the levers. Rin came out of Mika's house in Sango's uniform. She looked at Kohaku, who looked back at her and nodded. She smiled back. It was time.


	10. Payback

Beyond the Trees

_Chapter 10_

The encampment was unprotected from the outside. Even with the villagers moving the levers toward them, there was hardly a stir behind the wall. Kohaku was right they must be sleeping; the raid on top of the lack of food had made the bandits vulnerable like dog without teeth. Kohaku only gave orders through signals and hand gestures. They hauled the levers to the fence at his command, then carefully and quietly caught hold of it with their contraption. The fence creaked as it came down and the levers were left by the wayside as he men entered as quickly and silently as they could. Rin covered her mouth with Sango's black covering and put on her exterminators mask before entering. Her heart was pounding; it felt like someone was knocking very hard for entrance into a house. She scurried through and chose the tent where she was imprisoned. She tiptoed close to it when a man let out a blood curdling scream.

"Intrudgeeeeer" He could not finish his yell before he was stabbed and blood free flowed from his throat. The entire residence was astir with sword clanging and grunts of surprise. From the tent she was in front emerged a familiar face. The guard, who treated her brutally, stared sleepily and angrily at her with his sword out. Rin ran quickly to her right in a zigzag motion, she could not beat him in one to one combat; she was not strong enough for that. Kohaku taught her the most effective means of escape and she meant to execute it. She looked behind to see if he was following, he was. Perfect, her eyes read as they lifted in a smile.

The man turned the corner looking to his left where he saw Rin turn but the only thing he could focus on was the impact that hit his chest. He looked down, an arrow. He fell to his knees looking before him as Rin returned her bow to her shoulder and unsheathed her sword joining a fray beside her. The battle continued this way; many villagers were killed but not as many as the bandits. Rin ran over to where they used the levers to open the fence.

"Are these all the women?" Rin asked Jiho who was signalling for the women to run into the woods.

"Yes this is everyone." Jiho responded.

"And the men?"

"Only Kohaku is left." He said. Rin looked back. She knew where he was, she could hear the clang of his blade to the east of where she stood.

"Jiho, make sure the women make it back to the village safely. Protect the rear just in case any bandits escape. Tell the rest of the men to burn this place down before they leave. I'm going to look for Kohaku." Jiho nodded and they both parted ways without another word. As Rin ran through the center of the tents she looked for Kohaku. He was fighting the snakish grunt from the mountains in the place where she had been kicked to the ground. 'Koha…" But she was cut off with the feeling of a strong arm gripping her neck. She wriggled her body to free herself.

"Rin!" Kohaku yelled as he looked at the bandit leader lock Rin in a vice grip.

"At last" the man said and the snakish grunt let out a sinister chortle. "The last of the exterminators. I have searched for decades to rid the world of you filth." The eyes of the little grunt turned green as his master spoke and the man's arm slowly turned into a blade.

"What are you?" Rin squeaked as she felt the pressure of the blade on her neck.

"Demons." Kohaku said almost breathless. "I should've known a group of bandits could not be so powerful, there had to be something behind them."

"They may not have been as powerful without me but they were always as evil. I was just playing with this group to see how low they could truly go." The man said laughing as the venom split from his mouth. Rin continued to wriggle seemingly trying to free herself, though the prospect of getting free was not promising. "You may not recognize me but I know you Kohaku of the exterminators. It was my group who your people so effortlessly killed and also us who Naruto called when it was time to wipe out your village. You helped us there. I pleaded for Naruto to let me feed on your flesh myself but he refused, meanwhile the rest of my brethen were mowed down one by one by you sister here." He thought she was Kohaku's sister, Sango! Rin thought. Perhaps it was not best to steal her uniform after all. Kohaku gave a look to Rin in confusion.

"So you plan on exacting your revenge on us. Why didn't you just seek us out? Why attack these innocent villagers?" Kohaku asked.

"They are not so innocent anymore. You are attempting to create a new village of exterminators, eh? I knew attacking these villages would get you cockroaches scurrying out of your little holes and here you are. Finally my revenge will be complete and after I finish you, I'll destroy that village. I can't have your spawn causing problems for me" The man said pushing his blade further into Rin's neck. She stopped wriggling and held her fist clenched beside her. "Now watch demon slayer as I kill her then you. Your kind will be as extinct as mine." Rin's head was up she could barely meet Kohaku's eyes but with the view she had she stared at him and when he caught hold of her eyes, she nodded the best she could. Kohaku caught the gesture and nodded. "Waaatc…." The loudmouth demon continued but before the phrase could be uttered Kohaku was swinging his chain blade around in a swoop. The snickering goblin's green eyes, which had been staring on at the madness gleefully, widened in horror and he quickly dipped down for cover with a yelp. The demon holding Rin also looked shocked but he gathered his wits as he looked down at Rin. He smiled ready to slice her head off, when he was thrown off by her upturned lip. His eyes widened in pain, but not from his head, it was his leg. He unknowingly released his grip and Rin rolled forward out of the way. The demon looked down to see a small dagger lodged into his side. That was why she was wriggling, he thought quickly and then his fury heightened. He raised his blade arm to stab her but it was too late, Kohaku's blade had come full circle and the demon's head was cut clean off. The goblin scurryed away at the sight of his master's fall.

"Leave him, lets go. This place is going to burn down." Kohaku said. Rin had not even noticed the tents engulfed in flame, a hellish landscape for a worse than evil place. She was so stunned she hadn't moved and was only stirred by the feeling of Kohaku's hand gripping her own, she nodded and together they flew off into the woods.


	11. There and back again

Beyond the Trees

_Final Chapter_

That night when Rin and Kohaku returned to the village it was not to celebration but to mourning. Many of the men were killed that night and the women, who were almost unrecognizable from their wounds or because some did not come from this village, had spirits so weakened by their years of imprisonment, they seemed unsalvagable. Mika had her arms enclosed over one of the women. One of her eyes were swollen, twinged by a black and blue color and could not open, the other was etched in sadness but there was an indistinguishable gleam within that brought promise of recovery. The women's faces were weathered by torment and it would be months before the women recovered from their wounds and years, if they did at all, to recover from the inner wounds.

After that night, the village was on alert. They buried their dead and mourned them for a time. Kohaku was out mornings and nights patrolling the area, only sleeping during the day. Rin moved in with Kohaku when Mika's sister returned and this went on until the trees shed its leaves and the villages were clad in snow. There were no attacks during the winter and when spring lightened up the village with its flowers, it also raised the spirits of the villagers. The women were living normal lives now; the elderly women taught them the business of farming to keep their mind off the past. Mika's mind was never on Kohaku after her sister returned she concentrated only on rebuilding her sister's strength. Mika found help from the unexpected, Toji. He helped her and her sister with their farming and also gave Mika anything she needed. It wasn't surprising when he proposed to her and in the summer they planned to get married.

As the spring passed and summer was on the horizon, Rin began feeling homesick, not for travel or adventure but for Kaede, Shippo, Sango, Kagome, Miroku, even just a little bit Inuyasha. She never really understood Inuyasha and always sided against him when anything came up about Sesshomaru making their relationship especially combative. Yet she even missed his big mouth and she talked to Kohaku about leaving. The village was leading a stable life, no attacks and if there were the men knew how to protect themselves. Kohaku did not feel a part of the community now that they did not need him to fight, living a normal life would be strange for him. Maybe Rin was right about that. Rin convinced him that there was only one thing that there was left to do and that was to see his sister again.

It had been many years since Kohaku saw Sango. When he got his memory back after Naraku's death, he remembered both the good and the bad times. Rin had Sango's uniform in her bag, she realized she was not exactly fit for all it signified and instead wore a flower kimono that Mika and her sister made for her. They stood in front of the gate to Kaede's village.

"So. Are you ready?" Rin said looking up at Kohaku.

"I don't think I'll ever be quite ready for this." Kohaku responded, his heart was in his stomach and his mind was racing with possibilities.

"Don't worry I'm here with you." Rin said smiling, she held his hand and he smiled too, letting out a deep sigh as he looked at the fence before him. Rin looked at him then turned her back. It was unmistable she heard a jingle in the background, a familiar voice twinged in uncertainty and complete servility, and she furrowed her eyes to catch a glimpse of the white she saw in the distance. She did not see it now, but she knew it was still there watching her.

"What is it?" Kohaku said looking at Rin, whose hand loosened around his own.

"Nothing." Rin said as she regained her composure. "Come on, let's go in." She did not look back again, only forward. Kohaku followed behind, also confidently moving forward. In the distance a pair of bulbous green eyes glowed behind a tree. He'd been following connivingly behind as they made their journey, thinking of ways to kill them but never found the opportune moment. He squinted his eyes in disgust as they disappeared behind the fence.

"Having a good look?" A snakish voice said to the green eyed grunt. The goblin held his head where he was just popped by a stick. He turned around to see a green demon with bigger eyes than his staring at him condescendingly, but before he could repay the act he was slashed down by a clawed hand. "Well done master." The green demon said as he stared at the now dead bandit lying on the floor.

"Come Jaken." The voice of Jaken's master said. Jaken ran to catch up, Ah Un jingling behind.

"But master Sesshomaru aren't you going to visit the girl?" Sesshomaru stopped for a second, turning his head full of white hair to the now closed fence. There were many chances that he could have intervened, he had done so before but that was when she had no one. This time, he waited and watched in the darkness, saw the girl he raised gain heart and strength of body and mind. She was not weak as she was then, that satisfied him. If she kept following him like a puppy dog, she would be nothing to him but a servile imp like Jaken. He turned his head forward now, she did not need him anymore and this was the last time he would see her. A life of immortality is best spent alone, for if spent with mortals it would merely be a life steeped in death. He said no word to Jaken and continued walking forward, beyond the trees.


End file.
